


Sakura (VOLTRON CHILDREN'S PSYCHIATRIC WARD)

by n_writes, reqris



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Agoraphobia, Alternate Universe - Hospital, Angst, Anxiety, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder, Canon Autistic Character, Depression, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Keith (Voltron) is Bad at Feelings, Keith (Voltron) is a Mess, Lance (Voltron) Has ADHD, Mental Health Issues, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Past Abuse, Past Child Abuse, Past Sexual Abuse, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, References to Depression, Self-Esteem Issues, Self-Harm, Triggers, psychiatric ward, shallura - Freeform, voltron: legendary defender - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-31
Updated: 2018-01-31
Packaged: 2019-03-11 22:00:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,378
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13533411
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/n_writes/pseuds/n_writes, https://archiveofourown.org/users/reqris/pseuds/reqris
Summary: After losing their daughter, Sakura, to suicide five years ago, Allura and Takashi Shirogane dedicated their life and careers to treating children and teens with mental illnesses. They created the Sakura Children's Psychiatric Ward in Garrison Children's Hospital. They take in kids as little as three years old and all the way up to eighteen years old. These kids have a variety of mental health disorders such as schizophrenia to suicidal tendencies and self-harmers to behavioral disorders. The Shiroganes make sure that every child is treated equally and fairly, with kindness and respect, no matter what.





	1. Chapter One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1: this story is based on my personal experiences and is no way romanticizing mental illness or hospitalization
> 
> 2: this story will have a lot of trigger topics, read with caution. i will do my best to put warnings in each chapter 
> 
> 3: thank you to my lovely friend, Noemi, for making me the writer I am today and helping me with this story :)

TW: PANIC ATTACK 

Every morning in the Shirogane household was the same. 

Shiro would be the first one up, routinely waking up at five in the morning with no need for an alarm. He kissed his wife’s head before he stood up and pulled on a shirt, walking to the kitchen to prepare breakfast for the two of them. He cracked the eggs, fried them alongside the bacon, and poured the orange juice into two bottles. After preparing the plates, he wrapped them in tinfoil and placed them into a heated lunch box. With a yawn, he began brewing a pot of coffee. Shiro opened a cabinet and pulled out two mugs with writing on them. One was pink, engraved on it was “#1 Mommy!”, the other was gray and engraved on it was “#1 Daddy!”. He smiled as he ran his fingers through the engraved writing, flipping it over to see the bottom; written on it with paint was the name “Sakura”. He sighed softly when he set the coffee mug back down, leaning against the counter. He grabbed the coffee pot and filled up both mugs to the brim before walking back to their room with them. 

“Allura, my love. Time to wake up.” He said, placing the mugs down on the bedside table as he sat down next to her. 

He kissed her cheek and rubbed her arm lightly, just enough to wake her. When she opened her eyes, she smiled. Her droopy eyelids fluttered softly before looking up at her husband. Her brown eyes lit up and gleamed. “Good morning, ‘Kashi.”

“Good morning, Allura.” Shiro whispered.

He leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on her lips, holding it for a couple seconds before pulling away. Shiro caressed his wife’s cheek, admiring her beautiful features and pressing one more quick kiss to the top of her lip. He reached over and grabbed her mug, handing it to her as she sat up. She took a deep breath, taking in the scent of the coffee and then drinking from it slowly. 

When they finished with their coffee, they quickly got dressed and ready for the day. They were out the door by 6am, lunch box in hand, and made their way to the cemetery as they did every morning. They stopped only to get a rose for Sakura. Once they parked, Shiro got out first then walked to Allura’s side and opened the door for her, walking to their daughter's grave hand in hand. The cold Seattle wind hit their faces harshly, but despite the weather, they always ate breakfast with their daughter. They both sat down in front of Sakura’s tombstone, Allura placing the rose in front of it and kissing her own hand, then pressing it to the gravel, “Good morning, princess. I hope you slept well.”

“Good morning, Saku.” Shiro smiled as he did the same as Allura before pulling out the plates and handing one to Allura.

They sat with her for an hour, talking about things that had happened that week, telling her how much they loved and missed her, and telling short stories that Shiro made up; ones that Sakura had loved when she was younger. It was easier now to get through the morning then it was four years ago. They’d always end up in tears back then, not wanting to believe that their precious little girl was no longer on this earth. They accept it now, though. When they finally learned how to accept that their daughter wasn’t there with them physically, but spiritually, their lives grew and progressed positively instead of it being filled with sorrow and misery. It’s what Sakura wanted. It’s what her letter said. Her parents respected her wishes.

They cleaned up and packed the plates away, standing up as they said their goodbyes to their baby girl before going back to the car. They always switched seats after leaving, Allura driving instead of Shiro. It gave her something to concentrate on so her mind wouldn’t wander to any negative thoughts. Shiro liked to watch her silently as she drove, once again admiring the way she looked. Her eyes centered on the road, glancing around now and then to check her surroundings, and her head nodding slightly to the beat of the softly-played radio. It was Sakura’s favorite station. They listened to it every morning. Shiro smiled at the memory of him once changing the station abruptly to a classical music station. Allura and Sakura both groaned and rolled their eyes, calling him an old man then chuckling when Shiro pretended to be offended. 

“Takashi?” Allura spoke, pulling Shiro out of his memory. 

“Hm?” He hummed.

“We’re here.” She leaned forward, pressing a kiss to his cheek. “Are you okay?”

“I’m more than okay.” He reassured with a bright smile.

They made it into the hospital and quickly caught the elevator up to the eighth floor. Shiro kissed Allura’s cheek quickly, just before the elevator doors opened, before walking down the hallway. He could hear Allura giggling softly as she quickly walked to his side. He pulled out his resident card and scanned it into the machine to unlock the door. Shiro let Allura go first before walking in quickly, not wanting the door to start beeping loudly. The kids were still asleep in their rooms, but the nurses were already starting to wake them up to check their vitals. 

They turned at a hallway and suddenly heard a cry followed with a crash in one of the rooms. The sound of nurses running could be heard behind them. Nurse Thace, Sendak, and Ulaz all ran into room six. Shiro hummed softly and looked over at Allura. Room six had been empty for the longest time. A new patient must’ve arrived last night. 

“I’ll take this one.” Shiro said, not wanting Allura to get hurt if the patient was violent. 

“Alright. Be safe.” Allura nodded, blowing him a kiss before walking off to the nurse’s station. 

Shiro quickly walked to the room, stopping by the door to see that a big lookin’ fellow wearing only a hospital gown, had torn the nailed-down dresser from the wall and thrown it on the floor, along with his mattress and sheets; appearing to have created a barrier between him and the nurses. 

“St-stay away!” The big man cried out, keeping to the corner. 

“Calm down, buddy. We’re not trying to hurt you.” Shiro motioned for the nurses to halt their attempts to restrain him. 

“I want to go home!” He yelled, followed with a whimper as he slid down the wall.

“I understand that, bud. We’ll see what we can do about that, but right now we have to work on calming you down. Okay?” Shiro spoke gently, even crouched down as he talked to the patient in an attempt to make himself look smaller and less intimidating. 

The patient breathed heavily as he stared at Shiro, unsure of whether to trust the man. After a couple seconds, he finally nodded. 

Shiro gave a warm smile and nodded, turning to the nurses. “We’ve got it from here.” 

“Are you sure, Doctor Shirogane?” Thace questioned.

“100%.” Shiro nodded once more.

The nurses quickly left the room, giving Shiro more space and privacy to talk with the patient. Shiro turned to him and sat crisscrossed on the floor, the fallen dresser still in between them. 

“I’m Doctor Shirogane, but you can call me Shiro.” He introduced himself, waving slightly. “What can I call you?” 

“Hu-Hunk. My-my name’s Hunk.”  He stuttered, his body shivering and his breath uneven.

“Hunk, huh?” Shiro chuckled softly. “Fitting. I like it. So, Hunk, what happened this morning? Feeling a bit uneasy?”

Hunk gulped as he shut his eyes and nodded quickly, his fists clenching in an attempt to calm himself down. “Di-di-didn’-t know wh-where I wa-was. I wa-was scar-ed.” 

“I can imagine, big man. Not knowing where you are is pretty scary. I can tell you though that you’re safe. You’re at Garrison Children’s hospital in the psychiatric ward. No one here is going to hurt you, okay? We want you to be safe. I haven’t read your chart yet, so I don’t know why you’re here and how you got here, but I promise you I’m going to try to help the best I can. I’d hate to give you a sedative because those things knock you out pretty much the entire day, so let’s work on calming down. Can you do that?” Shiro asked, resting his elbows on his knees.

“Ye-yeah.” Hunk whimpered.

“Alright, good. Take a deep breath for me, bud. I know you can’t take a lengthy one right now so let's try five seconds in and out. Like this.” Shiro demonstrated, inhaling and exhaling. “Your turn.”

It took Hunk  a couple tries but eventually he was able to do it, working his way up to deeper breaths with Shiro’s guidance.

“I’m sorry about the mess.” Hunk sniffled, hanging his head down low in shame. 

“No worries, man. Nobody liked that dresser anyway.” Shiro joked as he stood up. “Here, help me stand it back up.” 

“Oh, right.” Hunk stood up and leaned down, lifting it back up with Shiro on the other side. 

“Feeling better?” Shiro asked.

“Mhm,” Hunk nodded.

“Alright, let's get you to Dr. Smythe to get your physical done. Is that okay? It’s just down the hall, I’ll walk with you.” He reassured

“O-okay.” Hunk said, trusting the doctor. 

Shiro smiled and gave a small nod before leaving the room, walking him over to the examination room and leaving him with Coran. “You’re in good hands. If you need me, I’ll be at the nurse’s station. Just knock.” 

He left the room as soon as he knew Hunk would be okay without him. Shiro walked over to the nurse’s station and looked around for Hunk’s file, finding it after a couple seconds. He opened it up and read through it.

“Hunk Garrett, seventeen years old, diagnosed with agoraphobia and anxiety.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOTLINES
> 
> National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-TALK (8255)
> 
> Crisis Text Line: Text “home” to 741741
> 
> Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helpline: 1-800-662-HELP (4357)
> 
> National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Helpline: 1-800-950-NAMI (6264)
> 
> National Sexual Assault Hotline (800.656.HOPE (4673) and online.rainn.org)


	2. Chapter 2: Hunk

The sound of Hunk’s heart beating through his chest silenced the noise of the other patients as he walked into the main lounge of the unit. The facility was full, or at least it felt so, and it made Hunk even more anxious than before. Maybe he could just go back to his room, no one would notice. Hunk turned on his feet quickly and began walking back to his room number, but his name was called all of a sudden. The pounding in his chest quickened again. This time, his breath halted and he began to feel nauseous, his head spinning as well. He could hear his name be called again. Hunk swung around quickly and stared at the man holding a lunch tray toward him. He was tall and fairly muscular, his skin dark with a well kept scruff around his face. He looked intimidating, but everyone looked intimidating to Hunk. 

“Your breakfast, big man.” He said in a mumble, pushing it closer.

Hunk took it with shaky hands and turned back around, yet not moving his legs. He scanned the room, noticing the quiet patients, most in hoodies to stray away from how cold it was. Hunk wished he had his clothes. A hospital gown did not provide warmth. More of the reason he was shivering. Only two others were also in gowns, he remembered their faces from the ER. He took a seat at an empty table and placed his tray down, sighing heavily as he bowed his head down. His heart pounded loud, fear still coursing through his body causing him to shake uncontrollably.

“Hunk,” A familiar voice called out in front of him. 

He looked up and saw the man from this morning, Doctor Shirogane. Somehow knowing he was with the doctor had calmed Hunk down a bit. He was a friendly and familiar face compared to the strangers that surrounded him. 

“Come with me,” The doctor smiled, motioning Hunk to follow him. 

Hunk quickly grabbed his tray and stood up, more than happy to get away from the other patients He followed the doctor into a private room, one resembling his therapist’s office, and took a seat on one of the chairs. The doctor sat down at his desk, opening up Hunk’s file and quickly glancing over it once more.

“Okay so, Hunk. I’m Doctor Shirogane, if you don’t remember. You can call me Shiro, if it’s too hard to pronounce. I’ll be your psychiatrist for you stay here. Sound okay?” The doctor kept his tone light and friendly, making Hunk feel safe in his presence. 

“Yeah,” Hunk nodded.

“Wonderful. So tell me, why do you think you’re here?” Shiro asked, leaning back in his chair.

“They think I’m crazy.” Hunk replied shortly.

“No, no, no. Why do  _ you  _ think you’re here?” Shiro restated.

“I guess..” He sighed, looking down at his tray. “I have a lot of anxiety.”

“What makes you anxious?” 

“I don’t know…” Hunk mumbled, “Everything.” He shrugged.

“How long has this anxiety been with you?” Shiro’s eyes fell to his notepad, quickly writing a few notes.

“As long as I can remember.” Hunk whispered shamefully.

Shiro nodded, pushing up his glasses. “Have you ever received treatment for that anxiety?”

“My moms make me see a therapist every two weeks.” He explained.

“Alright, Hunk.” Shiro smiled, setting down his pen. “What I’m going to do is give you a pill called Lexapro. It’ll help a lot with your anxiety. I’m going to start you at 25mg and we’ll see from there. It might make you sleepy at first. If you need to, go to the nurse’s station and ask if you could go to your room to rest. Any questions?”

Hunk tried to think of some questions, just to be able to stay here for longer, but he couldn’t think of anything. 


	3. Please Bare With Me

I apologize for the delay in a new chapter. There’s lots going on right now (College, volunteer work, jobs, depression, etc) I am in the works of a new chapter but you’ll have to bare with me for bit until I get back into the rhythm of writing and releasing weekly. Thanks so much for reading guys, it means a lot. 

-

Gee ❤️

**Author's Note:**

> Leave a comment on what you think of it so far!


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